More of a nimble bimble than a tiptoe in my case, on account of my being a small illustrated rat, but I can promise you tulips.

The unmistakable bold brash tulips add a splash of colour to the garden. The name originates from the Turkish, tülbend which some think is derived from the Persian delband, meaning turban. This could be due to someone’s fevered imagination thinking the flower looked like a turban, or because they saw an Ottoman’s turban fashionably decorated with a tulip; we will never know. The French insisted on calling it tulipe and the lazy English knocked off the extravagant « e ».

Carolus Clusius planted a few tulips to brighten up Leiden University in the Netherlands and they turned out to be rather popular with the Dutch. Tulpenmanie or tulip mania was born, reaching its peak in 1637. This is thought to be one of the first…

The February full moon is known as the Snow Moon. This is because February in North America is typically the snowiest month. The Native Americans also called it the Hunger, or Bones Moon as food stocks and hunting opportunities dwindled.

Approximately once every nineteen years the short month of February has no full moon at all, the lunar cycle being 29 days (or nights). Tonight (February 22nd 2016) the moon was shrouded by clouds, but still bright enough to shine hazily through. Here in England though, there is no snow.